Fuel tank



July 25, 1944. w, c, BROcK 2,354,573

' FUEL TANK I Filed April 21, 1943 W/m'am 0. E7190 k,

Patented July 25, 1944 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE I i 2,354,573 J r V FUEL TANK William 0. Brock, Glen Morgan, W. Va.

Application AprilZl, 1943, SerialNo. 483,964 2 Claims. 11. 244-135) j This invention relates to afuel tank for airplanes or for motor vehicles" of different kinds; and has for the primary object the provision of a device of this character which may be quickly emptied of its fuel contents in case of an ap parent accident to eliminate fire hazards so fre-- quently present in accidents wherein the fuel tank is damaged to permit the escape of the fuel which becomes ignited and results in a dis astrous fire or explosion, resulting in the de struction of property and in many instances injury to persons.

Another object of this invention is the provision of a device of the above stated character which under normal conditions will be substantially leakproof and may be quickly set in operation to empty the fuel by a person when it is apparent to said person that an accident cannot be avoided.

With these and other objects in view as will become more apparent as the description proceeds, the invention consists in certain novel features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts as will be hereinafter more fully described and claimed.

For a complete understanding of my invention, reference is to be had to the following description and accompanying drawing, in which Figure, 1 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view illustrating a fuel tank constructed in accordance with my invention and showing the same adapted to a fragmentary portion of an airplane.

Figure 2 is a sectional view taken on the line 2-2 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a transverse sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 1.

Referring in detail to the drawing. the numeral 5 indicates a fragmentary portion of an airplane. The present showing represents a part of the body or fuselage. However, it is to be understood that while the invention is illustrated as adaptable to this part of an airplane, it also may be installed in some other part of said airplane such as one of the wings. Further, it is to be understood that, the invention is readily adaptable to any type of motor vehicle.

In adapting the invention to the airplane it is preferable that the latter be provided with a fire wall 6 which forms a support for part of the valve mechanism and also the airplane adjacent to the fire wall has a discharge opening I. The fuel tank is indicated by the character 8, one end wall of which is provided with a stufiing gland 9. The opposite end of the tank from said end wall is shaped to form a valve seat HT normally engaged by a valve element H. The seat and valve element may have a ground'joint' or a gasket may be employed if desired. The valve element H is secured to an operating rod l2; one. end portion of which is provided with squared faces l3 matching the shape of an open ing provided in a bearing 1410f the fire wall 6 to prevent said rod l2 from rotating but which will permit said rod to slide freely in either direction. The operating rod I2 is further supported by a spider l5 mounted in the fuel tank and by the stuffing gland.

The other end portion of the rod I2 is equipped with feed threads I6 which terminate short of said end leaving a portion, as indicated at H, unthreaded. Surrounding the rod I2 is a coil spring i8, one end of which bears on a collar I9 secured to said rod and the other end against the spider. The action of the spring I8 is to normally retain the valve element in engagement with the seat ID to prevent the escape of the fuel contents of the tank.

A feed nut 20 is secured to an armature shaft 2! of an electric motor 23 by a coupling 24. The electric motor 23 is pivotally mounted in the airplane and is connected in an electric circuit 24' provided with a control switch 25.

The feed nut 20 either engages the non-threaded portion I! of the rod or the feed threads Hi.

When the valve H is in engagement with the seat the feed nut 2B is in mesh with the feed threads 50 that should an accident be apparent to the operator of the airplane, the switch 25 may be closed setting the motor 23 into operation. The nut 25 being rotated by the electric motor and in mesh with the feed threads, moves the rod l2 endwise to the left in Figure 1 disengaging the valve l i from the seat l0 permitting the fuel contents of the tank 8 to flow therefrom and discharge through the opening I of the airplane.

As the electric motor 23 may be left in operation, the stated endwise movement of the rod l2 stops as soon as the feed nut moves onto the smooth portion I! of the rod to prevent the valve element from being jammed against the fire wall 6.

It is to be understood that the switch 25 will be located in convenient reach of the pilot of the airplane so that the motor 23 may be set into operation with the least amount of effort on the part of the pilot. Whenever the pilot is of the opinion that an accident is unavoidable, it is only necessary that the switch 25 be brought into closed position whence the electric motor completes the operation of opening the valve to permit the rapid emptying of the fuel tank.

While I have shown and described the preferred embodiment of my invention, it will be understood that minor changes in construction, combination and arrangement of parts may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as claimed.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is: I I

1. In combination with a vehicle body having an opening in a lower wall thereof, a horizontally arranged fuel tank mounted in the body and q and having feed threads arranged externally of having one end fully open and located adjacent to and in a plane above said opening and shaped to provide a valve seat, a valve element for the seat and movable away from the tank to open the latter for the discharge of its contents? means to provide for an unobstructed flow of the contents of the tank therefrom through the opening of the body.

2. In combination with a vehicle body having an opening in a lower wall thereof, a horizontally arranged fuel tank mounted in the body and having one end fully open and located adjacent to and in a plane above said opening and shaped to provide a valve seat, a valve element for the seat and movable away from the tank to open the latter for the discharge of its contents through the opening, a shaft connected to the valve element and slidably supported by the tank the tank, a feed nut meshing with the threads. spring means in the tank acting to engage the valve element with the seat and supported by said shaft, a-fire wall located adjacent the opening of the body and adjacent the open end of the tank and having the shaft slidably connected thereto and held against rotation relative thereto, and a power driven: means connected to the nut for the rotation; thereof to move the valve element by said shaft away from the seat and close to the fire wall to permit free flow of the contents of the tank therefrom through the opening of the body. 7

v WILLIAM C. BROOK. 

